Airbus Updates No.3828

AerCap orders A321P2Fs

Lessor AerCap has announced on 13 October 2022 that it has signed an agreement with Elbe Flugzeugwerke -EFW for the conversion of fifteen Airbus A321-200s into freighters, the A321-200P2F. Next to this firm order, the company also took options on another fifteen conversion slots.

The fifteen Airbuses are coming from AerCap's own portfolio and will be converted between 2023 and 2025. First delivery and entry into commercial service with a customer of the lessor is also planned for 2023. If AerCap already has placed the aircraft with an airline is currently unknown.

Airbus Updates No.3797

 Teleport to add Airbus A321P2F aircraft

Capital A, the holding company owning AirAsia (X) and Teleport, has announced it has signed a lease-agreement with lessor BBAM for the delivery of three  Airbus A321P2Fs (Passenger-to-Freighter). The aircraft are set to be delivered from the first quarter of 2023.

The three A321P2Fs will join Teleport's single Boeing B737-800BCF, which is operated by K-Mile Air from Thailand. It's expected, however, that the Airbuses will be operated by AirAsia for the cargo airline.

Teleport launched it's dedicated cargo-flying operations in November last year to boost the company's e-commerce logistics operations. It expects to grow to a fleet of 100 freighters by 2030 if the e-commerce boom continues.

Airbus Updates No.3771

 

Qantas Freight to replace B737s with A321 freighters

Qantas Freight Airbus A321 Freighter© Vallair

16.08.2022 - 00:09 UTC

Qantas Group has selected six converted A321-200(P2F)s to replace its ageing fleet of B737 freighters operated by subsidiary Express Freighters Australia (QE, Sydney Kingsford Smith) under the Qantas Freight brand.

The airline said the six aircraft would be sourced on the open market and converted. Deliveries are expected between 2024 and 2026.

"Qantas Freight has been one of the standout performers for the Group during the pandemic as Australians rapidly shifted to online shopping. While some of that shift is temporary, demand remains well above pre-pandemic levels even with the lifting of almost all COVID-related restrictions. The first three A321P2F have been a fantastic addition to our fleet, and operating a single-type of narrowbody aircraft in the future will enable us to generate further operational efficiencies and significantly reduce emissions per tonne of freight flown," Qantas Group Chief Executive Alan Joyce said.

Express Freighters Australia currently operates four B737-300(F)s, which are 35.7 years old on average, and a single 32.2-year-old B737-300(SF). Another -400(SF) is operated by independent ACMI/charter specialist Airwork Flight Operations (PST, Auckland Int'l), the ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows.

With its current fleet of three A321-200(P2F)s, Express Freighters Australia is the world's largest operator of the type. Two of the three were sourced from sister carrier Jetstar Airways (JQ, Melbourne Tullamarine), while the third is ex-Onur Air (8Q, Istanbul New) stock. While Qantas (QF, Sydney Kingsford Smith) does not operate any A321-200s, Jetstar Airways operates six.

Qantas Freight's fleet, which is fully sourced from other operators under ACMI and CMI contracts, also comprises one B747-400FSCD, two B747-8Fs, one B767-300F, one BAe 146-200(QC), one BAe 146-200(QT), six BAe 146-300(QT)s, and two Saab 340A(F)s.

Airbus Updates No.3762

 

Vietnam Airlines to add two converted A321 freighters

Vietnam Airlines Airbus A321-200© Tis Meyer / PlanePics.org

11.08.2022 - 01:23 UTC

Vietnam Airlines (VN, Hanoi) will enter the dedicated freighter market, having signed a commitment with Air Transport Services Group for the sale, P2F conversion, and lease-back of two A321-200s.

"We are acquiring two A321s from them. We're converting them to freighters, and we're leasing them back to them," ATSG's Chief Executive and President Rich Corrado said during the holding's quarterly earnings call.

Chief Commercial Officer Mike Berger added that the aircraft will redeliver to Vietnam Airlines in 2023. ATSG did not reveal the STC to be used.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that Vietnam Airlines operates forty-eight A321-200s, of which all but three are owned by the carrier. The airline is in the process of a gradual rollover to an A320neo Family narrowbody fleet. According to its Request for Proposals from January 2022, the two converted A321-200s will be of 2007 vintage of which six of the carrier's A321s were built in that year. Vietnam Airlines did not respond to ch-aviation's request for specific identification of the two airframes.

The Vietnamese flag carrier does not currently operate any dedicated freighters.

The ch-aviation fleets ownership module shows that ATSG's in-house lessor unit, Cargo Aircraft Management, owns 114 aircraft, more than half of which - 74 units - are leased to the holding's own carriers ABX Air, ATI - Air Transport International, and Omni Air International. The remainder is placed with various cargo carriers around the world. Last year, ATSG executed a similar sale/lease-back transaction involving P2F conversion with Air Canada (AC, Montréal Trudeau), buying two of its B767-300(ER)s and redelivering them as B767-300(ERBDSF)s.

The lessor focuses on the B767 and B777 Families and owns a small portfolio of narrowbody aircraft, comprising four B757-200(C)s placed with ATI and four A321-200s under conversion (two have been earmarked for Malaysia's Raya Airways (TH, Kuala Lumpur Subang)).

Airbus Updates No.3785

 

Latvia's SmartLynx Airlines orders six A321(P2F)s

SmartLynx Malta A321-200(F) (DHL Livery)© SmartLynx

21.02.2022 - 08:10 UTC

SmartLynx Airlines (6Y, Riga) has ordered another six A321-200(P2F)s from Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW) as part of plans to expand its operations on behalf of DHL Express.

"We are delighted to work with EFW towards our goal of becoming the largest operator of A321 cargo freighters, as we are convinced that this type of aircraft will become the top choice for customers globally," Chief Executive Zygimantas Surintas said.

The six aircraft will undergo conversion with ST Engineering at its Singapore Seletar and Guangzhou sites in 2022 and 2023. EFW is a joint venture between Airbus and ST Engineering.

SmartLynx Airlines confirmed to ch-aviation that all six newly ordered A321-200(P2F)s would be placed on the AOC of SmartLynx Airlines Malta. The carrier also clarified that it would not confirm at this stage if the six aircraft would operate for DHL Express, even though EFW's press statement suggested that.

The ch-aviation fleets advanced module shows that currently, both of SmartLynx's dedicated freighters - one A321-200(P2F) and one A321-200(PCF) - are operated by the Maltese unit which also operates six A330-300 preighters.

Three of SmartLynx Airlines' A321-200s were ferried to Guangzhou for conversion in late 2021 under an earlier deal with EFW. A fourth, covered by the earlier agreement, remains parked at San Antonio Int'l but will enter conversion later this year. The newly ordered six units are incremental.

Both SmartLynx A321 freighters operate on behalf of DHL's EAT Leipzig on services connecting the integrator's hub at Leipzig/Halle with Linz and Brescia.

Airbus Updates No.3394

 

Florida's GLOBALX signs for five A321(P2F)s

Illustration of GLOBALX Airbus A321-200F© GLOBALX

21.05.2021 - 06:33 UTC

GLOBALX (GXA, Miami Int'l) has signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with ST Engineering and its in-house leasing arm Aviation Asset Management to lease five incremental converted A321-200(P2F)s.

The Singapore-based maintenance provider said it would acquire the A321-200s for conversion either on its own or through its joint venture firms. It did not reveal the identity of the aircraft. The first of the quintet is set to enter conversion in April 2022 and deliver to GLOBALX in the fourth quarter of the year. The other four units will be converted and delivered "progressively".

The Floridan start-up, which is currently undergoing certification, signed an LOI with Vallair for ten A321-200(P2F)s in October 2020, of which five were confirmed for conversion by ST Engineering. GLOBALX Chairman Ed Wegel confirmed to ch-aviation that the five newly ordered aircraft are on top of the ten previously signed, increasing the start-up's freighter fleet to fifteen A321-200(P2F)s.

In April 2021, GLOBALX secured a USD10 million investment from Ascent Global Logistics, which it said would partially fund its expansion into the freighter market later in 2021.

GLOBALX plans to operate a two-pronged business model based on the passenger and cargo niches. In terms of its passenger operations, GLOBALX aims to provide charter capacity for major airlines, tour operators, professional and collegiate sports teams, casinos, and corporate groups, as well as direct-to-consumer charters under its Part 380 regulations out of its bases at Miami Int'l and Atlantic City.

The carrier has so far taken delivery of one A320-200 and one A321-200.

Airbus Updates No.3344

 

India's IndiGo Airlines to add four A321(P2F)s

IndiGo Airlines Airbus A321-200NX© Airbus

23.04.2021 - 14:28 UTC

IndiGo Airlines (6E, Delhi Int'l) has announced that it will add four A321-200(P2F) converted freighters, with the first delivery scheduled for the first half of 2022.

The Indian low-cost carrier said that it had already signed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with an undisclosed lessor for the first two A321-200s and was in the process of sourcing the other two aircraft. The narrowbodies will be converted for the airline by Elbe Flugzeugwerke, a joint venture of ST Engineering and Airbus.

IndiGo said that the deliveries of all four aircraft would conclude within a year of the first delivery, i.e. by mid-2023. It indicated that it remained open to adding more freighters in the future.

"IndiGo was already the largest carrier of cargo in domestic India before COVID-19, and we expect the market to continue to grow after the pandemic," Chief Executive Ronojoy Dutta said.

The airline underlined that the A321(P2F)s would be operationally well-integrated into its all-Airbus passenger fleet. According to the ch-aviation fleets advanced module, the LCC currently operates eighty-seven A320-200s, 121 A320-200Ns, thirty-nine A321-200NXs, and twenty-six ATR72-600s. It has a further 570 A320neo Family aircraft on firm order from Airbus, making it the world's largest customer for the family, as well as a further twenty-four ATR72-600s from Avions de Transport Régional.

Rival LCC SpiceJet (SG, Delhi Int'l) was active on the cargo market even before the pandemic. The airline's freighter fleet, excluding makeshift freighters, comprises three B737-700(BDSF)s and two B737-800(BCF)s. India's third large LCC, GoAir (G8, Mumbai Int'l), does not operate any freighters.